Kenosis

Greek theological concept — derived from Philippians 2:7 (Christ 'emptied himself' — ekenosen — taking the form of a servant) — describing the divine self-limitation or self-emptying by which the eternal Logos became incarnate — one of the most generative concepts in Christian theology and contemporary philosophy of religion.

Creates the theological category for voluntary self-limitation — Kenosis captures the paradox of divinity choosing vulnerability; beyond Christology, it has been generalized by theologians (Jurgen Moltmann, Sergei Bulgakov) as a model for all divine action and by philosophers (Simone Weil, John Milbank) as a model for ethical self-giving — the most philosophically productive single concept in Christian mystical theology.